| dc.description.abstract | Indonesia is the largest coffee exporter in the world, which is in the fourth position
after Brazil, Vietnam and Colombia. However, the productivity of coffee produced from year
to year tends to decrease and not optimal. This happens because of many factors, one of
which is the type of shade plants used. Inappropriate shade plants affect the growth and
productivity of coffee plants. The purpose of this research was to analyze the utilization of
Gamal plant (Gliricidia sepium) as a shade for coffee plants. The respondents of this research
were 35 coffee farmers in Jember and Banyuwangi regencies. The research variables
measured included the types of coffee shade plants, reasons for using shade plants and
farmers' knowledge about Gamal plant as a shade for coffee plants. The data collection was
carried out using survey, interview and questionnaire. The data collection was done directly
with the primary source. The results of this research informed that the shade plants used by
coffee farmers were varied, such as banana, lamtoro, coconut tree, Gamal, avocado and
sengon trees. Most of the coffee farmers used bananas by 86%, avocados by 65%, and wood
by 46% as a shade. They chose the plants because they were easier to maintain, cheap seeds
and produced fruit and woods which could be sold. Based on the literature, the most effective
shade plants for coffee plants were Gamal plants. However, Gamal plant (Gliricidia sepium)
is still not widely used by coffee farmers because the seeds are too expensive and it does not
produce fruit that can be sold. The conclusion of this research was that most of the coffee
farmers were still unaware and did not use Gamal as a shade plants. | en_US |
